Nanny He bergerak sangat cepat. Baru kemarin dia menanyakan apakah Xu An mempertimbangkan taman kanak-kanak di Kota Hai, dan hari ini dia sudah muncul dengan tumpukan brosur tebal untuknya.
"Ini dianggap TK terbaik di kompleks perumahan kami. Kebanyakan anak di sini sekolah di sini." Nanny He berganti brosur. "Ini didirikan tiga tahun lalu, tapi reputasinya bagus. Banyak orang di sekitar sini juga pilih TK ini."
Lalu, dia memasukkan sisa brosur ke tangan Xu An.
"Ini TK lain di sekitar. Ada yang besar, kecil, bagus, dan tidak. Bisa kamu lihat semua."
Setelah bicara, Nanny He buru-buru pergi ke kasir menyapa Nenek Xu, lalu mengambil tray untuk mengambil makanannya.
Makan siang hari ini paha ayam panggang garam dan daging babi kukus tepung beras. Pasti enak!
Xu An membuka semua brosur yang dibawa Nanny He. Dia harus mengakui, dua yang direkomendasikan memang paling bagus.
Hanya saja biayanya tidak murah. Keduanya 1.500 per bulan.
Untuk Xu Kang dan Xu Le bersama, total 3.000 per bulan, setara gaji bulanan karyawan kantor biasa.
Untungnya, meski tidak kaya raya di kehidupan ini, dia tetap mampu bayar 3.000 per bulan.
TK Qingya dan TK Sunshine keduanya punya hari buka minggu ini, pukul 08.00–16.00. Bisa dikunjungi setelah jam usaha.
Xu An melipat dua brosur, menyimpannya, dan masuk dapur sibuk.
Pesanan nasi kotak hari ini untuk stasiun Perpustakaan Kota Hai 754; untuk Taman Kreatif Bata Merah 273; total 1.027!
Penjualan nasi kotak tembus seribu!
'Kalau bisa pertahankan penjualan ini, minggu depan bisa lihat truk kecil. Waktunya upgrade dari tiga roda ke empat! Gas!'
Saat Nanny He tahu Xu An mau cek TK sore ini, dia langsung ikut. Dua cucunya dulu sekolah TK di sini, jadi dia familiar dan bisa kasih masukan.
Baik kehidupan lalu maupun sekarang, Xu An sendiri tidak pernah TK. Pengetahuannya cuma dari berita.
Tapi dari sepuluh berita, sembilan negatif—soal makanan, kebersihan, atau guru gila buat kejahatan...
Sekarang dengan Nanny He berpengalaman ikut, dia merasa jauh lebih tenang.
Banyak kendaraan parkir di depan TK Qingya—sepeda, gerobak tiga roda, skuter listrik, mobil, beragam.
Saat penjaga gerbang lihat Xu An berhenti di depan, dia buru-buru arahkan parkir gerobak tiga roda di tempat yang tidak mengganggu lalu lintas. Senyum manis terus; tidak ada sikap sombong klasik merendahkan orang.
Parkir selesai, Xu An bantu Nenek Xu turun, lalu angkat Xu Kang dan Xu Le. Mengikuti Nanny He, mereka masuk TK Qingya.
TK Qingya didirikan 2002, tepat sepuluh tahun. Jejak angin dan matahari di dinding luar terlihat jelas.
Masuk gerbang, seorang guru langsung menyambut, senyum ramah di wajah bulatnya. "Halo, orang tua. Saya yang akan mengajak mengelilingi TK. Silakan ikut saya."
Pintu masuk menuju halaman kecil, kira-kira empat meter lebar, sepuluh meter panjang. Tiga pohon kelengkeng ditengah, lantai berwarna-warni disusun pola kartun.
Lebih dalam ada gedung tiga lantai, total delapan belas kelas—enam untuk masing-masing tingkat kecil, menengah, besar. Tiap kelas muat maksimal 25 anak dengan tiga guru.
Kelas tidak sesak; ruang cukup untuk dua puluh anak. Dinding belakang lemari besar, bagian bawah rak terbuka tiga tingkatan penuh buku gambar anak.
Xu An ambil beberapa buku lihat isinya. Semua normal, tidak ada pesan aneh tersembunyi.
Di sudut tiga kotak penyimpanan besar. Dia buka yang atas, berisi boneka-boneka lucu, semua bersih dicuci.
Dia intip dua kelas sebelah, susunan sama. Tidak perlu khawatir kekurangan mainan atau buku gambar.
Melihat banyak mainan dan buku, Xu Kang dan Xu Le kayak mimpi. Masing-masing gendong tumpukan buku dan tidak mau lepas.
Tapi tur kelas selesai, waktunya ke lapangan belakang.
Xu An ambil buku dari pelukan mereka, tapi keduanya langsung jatuh ke lantai, cengkeram buku erat. Lalu menangis palsu—hanya suara tanpa air mata.
Lihat akting mereka, Xu An cekikik dalam hati. 'Dua nakal kecil ini.'
Tapi Xu An sudah pandai hadapi trik ini. "Tahu nggak, di belakang gedung ada lapangan. Ada perosotan besar, tinggi banget. Bisa duduk di atas terus WHOOSH, geser turun. Seru banget! Ada buaian juga. Anak duduk di buaian, didorong dikit, bisa ayung tinggi banget, kayak terbang! Dan ada kolam bola, penuh bola-bola warna-warni..."
Sambil Xu An bercerita, isak tangis palsu mereka pelan. Mulut perlahan tertutup, kepala terangkat, menatap Xu An tak berkedip. Tulisan "mau main" tertera di wajah gemuk mereka.
"Tapi kayaknya ada anak laki-laki yang nggak mau ke lapangan, yaudah kita di sini aja baca buku. Selesai baca pulang. Nggak ke lapangan," kata Xu An pura kecewa.
Mendengar pulang, keduanya diam. Lompat berdiri, cepat kembalikan buku ke rak, lalu goncang tangan Xu An sambil suara manis, "Kakak, yuk ke lapangan! Mau perosotan, mau buaian!"
"Tadi nggak mau kan? Yuk pulang aja."
"Nggak~ Kakak, sayang, yuk~"
Di bawah rayuan hebat, Xu An setuju di luar tapi dalam hati senyum lebar.
'Mau ngejar akal denganku? Kalian berdua masih terlalu muda.'
Saat tur kelas jarang lihat orang, tapi lapangan penuh sesak. Di tiap alat mainan, beberapa anak berebut atau antre.
Wuih!
Lihat perosotan, keduanya yang tadi antusias langsung lepas tangan Xu An dan lari ke sana.
Menunggu pun tidak diam. Kayak dua kupu-kupu sosial, mereka ngobrol dengan dua anak di depan. Tak lama, sudah ketawa dan main bersama.
Xu An dan yang lain berdiri di samping, lihat mereka main, senyum tak sadar terukir.
"TK kami punya ahli gizi profesional nyusun menu, jadi sarapan dan makan siang seimbang nutrisinya. Guru kami lulusan perguruan tinggi pendidikan profesional dan punya pengalaman lebih dari dua tahun. Paham mendalam psikologi dan perkembangan anak. TK kami..."
Guru pendamping tadi memanfaatkan jeda menjelaskan keunggulan sekolah. Semakin dengar, Xu An semakin puas.
Awalnya Xu An rencana cek TK lain dulu baru putusin, tapi Xu Kang dan Xu Le nggak mau pulang apapun. Bahkan bilang teman baru mereka sekolah di sini, jadi mereka mau sekolah di sini juga.
TK Qingya solid di semua aspek, dari guru sampai manajemen, sekolah bersejarah sepuluh tahun. Dua cucu Nanny He dulu sekolah di sini. Nanny He juga kenal banyak orang tua lain di sana, kebanyakan dari kompleks dekat, dan semua pilih TK ini...
'Kalau begitu, nggak perlu ragu. TK Qingya aja!'
Nanny He moved very quickly. Just yesterday she had asked if Xu An was considering a kindergarten in Hai City, and today she showed up with a thick stack of flyers for him.
"This one is widely considered the best kindergarten in our neighborhood complex. Most of the kids here go to this one." Nanny He switched to another flyer. "This one was founded three years ago, but it has a good reputation. A lot of people nearby choose this kindergarten too."
Then, she stuffed the rest of the flyers into Xu An’s hands.
"These are some of the other kindergartens in the area. There’s a mix of big and small, good and bad. You can take a look at all of them."
After speaking, Nanny He hurriedly went over to the cash register to say hello to Granny Xu, then grabbed a tray to get her food.
Today’s lunch was salt-baked chicken drumsticks and steamed pork with rice flour. It was going to be delicious!
Xu An looked through all the flyers Nanny He had brought. He had to admit, the two she recommended really did have the best offerings.
The tuition just wasn’t cheap. Both schools cost 1,500 a month.
For both Xu Kang and Xu Le, the combined tuition would be three thousand a month, which was as much as an average office worker’s monthly salary.
Fortunately, although he wasn’t fabulously wealthy in this life, he could still afford a monthly tuition of three thousand.
Qingya Kindergarten and Sunshine Kindergarten both had open house days this week, from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM. He could go take a look after his business hours.
Xu An folded the two flyers, tucked them away, and went into the kitchen to get busy.
Today’s box lunch order for the Hai City Library station was 754; the order for Red Brick Creative Park was 273; a total of 1,027!
Box lunch sales had broken a thousand!
’If I can keep these sales up, I can go look at a small truck on Sunday. Time to upgrade from three wheels to four! Let’s go!’
When Nanny He learned that Xu An was going to check out the kindergartens that afternoon, she immediately volunteered to go with them. Her two grandsons had attended preschool in the area, so she was familiar with the schools and could offer some helpful advice.
Whether in his past life or this one, Xu An had never attended kindergarten himself. His knowledge of them was limited to what he saw on the news.
But out of ten stories that made the news, nine were negative—either problems with the food, subpar sanitation, or some unhinged teachers doing terrible things...
Now, with the experienced Nanny He accompanying them, he naturally felt much more at ease.
Many vehicles were parked at the entrance of Qingya Kindergarten—bicycles, three-wheeled carts, electric scooters, and cars, a whole variety.
When the gatekeeper saw Xu An stop at the entrance, he hurried over to direct him to park the three-wheeled cart in a spot that wouldn’t block traffic. He was all smiles the entire time; none of that classic snobbery where people look down on you.
After parking the cart, Xu An first helped Granny Xu get out, then lifted Xu Kang and Xu Le out. Following Nanny He’s lead, they headed inside Qingya Kindergarten.
Qingya Kindergarten was founded in 2002, making it exactly ten years old now. The marks of wind and sun on the exterior walls were quite obvious.
The moment they stepped through the gate, a teacher immediately came to greet them, a kind smile on her round face. "Hello, parents. I’ll be the one giving you a tour of the kindergarten. Please follow me this way."
The entrance opened into a small plaza, about four meters wide and ten meters long. Three longan trees were planted in the middle, and the ground was paved with colorful bricks arranged into cartoon patterns.
Further in was a three-story teaching building with a total of eighteen classrooms—six for each of the three levels: junior, middle, and senior. Each classroom could accommodate a maximum of 25 children and was staffed with three teachers.
The classrooms weren’t crowded; there was more than enough room for twenty children. The back wall of the classroom was a large cabinet, with a three-tiered open bookshelf at the bottom filled with all sorts of children’s picture books.
Xu An casually picked up a few books to look at. The content was all normal, with no strange, inappropriate messages hidden inside.
In the corner were three large storage bins. He opened the top one and found it was filled with various stuffed animals, all washed clean and looking very cute.
He peeked into the two adjacent classrooms and saw they all had the same setup. There was no need to worry about a shortage of toys or picture books.
Seeing so many toys and picture books felt like a dream to Xu Kang and Xu Le. Each of them hugged a stack of books and refused to let go.
But they had finished touring the classrooms and it was time to see the playground behind the building.
Xu An reached out to take the picture books from their arms, but the two immediately dropped to the floor, clutching the books tightly. Then came the classic fake crying—all thunder and no rain.
Watching their phony crying, Xu An couldn’t help but click his tongue in his mind. ’What a pair of little rascals.’
However, Xu An was well-practiced in dealing with this tactic. "You know, there’s a playground behind the building. It has a big, big slide, a really tall one. You can sit on it and WHOOSH, slide right down. It’s so much fun! The playground also has swings. A kid can sit on a swing, and with a little push, you can swing super, super high, almost like you’re flying! And there’s a ball pit, filled with all kinds of colorful little balls..."
As Xu An continued his description, the boys’ dry sobs grew quieter. Their mouths slowly closed, and they lifted their little heads, staring at Xu An without blinking. The words "I want to go play" were practically written all over their chubby little faces.
"But it seems some little boys don’t want to go to the playground, so I guess we’ll just stay here and read our books. After we finish reading, we’ll go home. No playground for us," Xu An said, feigning disappointment.
The moment the two little guys heard they were going home, they stopped fussing. They shot to their feet, quickly put the picture books back on the shelf, and started shaking Xu An’s hand, saying in their milky voices, "Brother, let’s go to the playground! We want to go on the slide, and the swings too!"
"But didn’t you just say you didn’t want to go? Let’s just go home."
"Nooo, Brother, please, please, let’s go~"
Under their intense pleading, Xu An reluctantly agreed on the surface, but inwardly he was beaming.
’Trying to outsmart me? You two little brats are still too green for that.’
They hadn’t seen many people during the tour inside, but the playground was a sea of people. Next to every piece of equipment, several children were either fighting over it or waiting their turn to play.
Woohoo!
The moment they saw the slide, the two boys, who had been excited the whole way, immediately let go of Xu An’s hand and ran toward it.
They didn’t stay idle while waiting, either. Like a pair of social butterflies, they started chatting with the two kids in front of them. In no time, they were all laughing and playing together.
Xu An and the others stood to the side, watching the two boys play, an unconscious smile spreading across their faces.
"Our kindergarten employs a professional nutritionist to plan the meals, so both breakfast and lunch are nutritionally balanced. Our teachers are graduates from professional teaching colleges and all have over two years of experience. They have a deep understanding of child psychology and development. Our kindergarten..."
The teacher who had been accompanying them and explaining things took advantage of the break to tell them about the school’s various strengths. The more Xu An heard, the more satisfied he was with this school.
Originally, Xu An had planned to see the other kindergarten before making a decision, but Xu Kang and Xu Le refused to leave for anything. They even said their new friends attended this kindergarten, so they wanted to attend it too.
Qingya Kindergarten was solid in every aspect, from its teaching staff to its management, and it was a well-established school with ten years of history. Nanny He’s two grandsons had both gone here. Nanny He also knew many of the other elderly people there, who were mostly from the nearby neighborhood complex, and they had all chosen this kindergarten as well...
’In that case, there’s nothing to hesitate about. Qingya Kindergarten it is!’
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